Monday, September 17, 2007

Jaisalmer, Rajasthan, India: 13June07

First Time Desert, the Golden City

This should be a romantic and sentimental journey. My first time to stand at the sand dune, camping out at night, huddling around a tiny fire beneath the shed of stars and listening to the camel drivers' songs.
The dessert is very winding and the sands flying every where in the wind. The people here look older than their actual age, due to the harsh living environment.
Riding a camel is not as romantic or as easy as i thought. The inner thigh and butt got really pain from the ride. i am glad that Mathieu was with me, or else, i won't think i would come to this camel safari and stay at desert with 2 camel drivers. :)
Jaiselmer is Golden City, most structures here are built from the yellow sandstone. However due to over development and without serious conservation efforts, this Golden city is now one of the world's most endangered monuments. Unlike the well preserved Jophur Fort, Jasalmer Fort look like a mess with contructions all around both inside and outside of the Fort.
Like any other Indian city, animals are every where in the town but besides from cow, they are camels and donkeys here. Indian is really incredible. They can live in peace with animals, sharing their living quarter with the animals. Back home, living with animals is unhygiene. In Malaysia, the government cull dogs while in Singapore, the government cull cats and birds. i wonder, are development and 'civilisation' making us lost something valueable in our human nature?



Behind is the wind turbines that kind of thing to generate electricity.



The sunset at the desert. It is impossible to sleep at the sand dune as the wind was so strong that we got sand all over our body, We slept on this platform in the desert and when we woke up in the morning, we was covered with a layer of sand.



The sun rise at the desert.



One of the camel drivers. He was preparing our food: dal (lentils) fried, rice and chapati.



On the camel.



Hey hey... The sand dune.



One of the havelis, buidling built by wealthy merchant. The sand stone building has incerdibly fine scupltures.



The fort. About 25% of the old city's population rsides within the fort walls.



The town itself is like a mirage in the middle of a barren desertscape.



The local main market area.

1 comment:

Jaisalkot said...

Thank you for sharing about jaisalmer market